A dream come true for Paris rises in Manila

THE famous heiress to the hotel dynasty and Hollywood star-cum-international style icon Paris Hilton opened the doors to her very first property project—The Paris Beach Club. The club, which is adjacent to the Azure Urban Resort Residences, was inaugurated by Hilton and premier real-еstatе firm Century Properties Chief Operating Officer John Victor “Jigger” R. Antonio in Parañaque City on March 13.

Located on a six-hectare resort-themed condominium, the multiple-level club and centerpiece amenity of the complex will only be for the exclusive use of Azure residents and their guests. It is a sprawling man-made beach with undulating waves and fine sand that is believed to have come from the islands of Balesin in Quezon Province. Azure also has a waterfall, a poolside bar and an infinity pool that overflows into the private beach coves located at the opposing ends of the property.

It was in 2011 when Hilton first came to the Philippines to work with the company’s creative team. She helped conceptualize for design and specifications of the beach club.

“I really love the concept of Azure because I thought of how cool it is in the middle of the city to have a man-made beach that is so beautiful and breathtaking. I want to live here. If I lived in the Philippines, I would definitely live in Azure,” said Hilton. It’s beautiful and unbelievable. “The Philippines is one of my favorite places in the world and I’m just so happy to have my property here.”

In choosing to partner with Hilton, Antonio said that her style, experience and exposure to the top beach destinations in the world made her the “perfect person to collaborate with.”

“It has been a privilege working with Paris for this milestone project, which has proven to be one of the country’s solidly performing developments,” Antonio said.

At the ground level of the club, one will see a posh, high-ceilinged lobby with chandeliers and black velvet chairs, as well as a colorful ice cream and candy bar. Separate spas with locker rooms and a social lounge will be found on the second floor, and the topmost floor will have the indoor and outdoor restaurants where one can enjoy a view of the Azure Beach.

“We wanted to provide our residents with a world-class residential resort experience so we chose to partner with an equally world-class personality known for her fine taste, having been exposed to the world of real-еstatе development early on and having visited the world’s top beach destinations,” said Antonio.

Azure Urban Resort Residences is home to nine towers named after the world’s most popular beach destinations, namely, Rio, Santorini, St. Tropez, Positano, Maui, Maldives, Miami, Bahamas and Boracay. Each of the nine towers will have a roof deck that will have beehive-like seating areas amid refreshing greenery. From these topmost floors, one can enjoy a majestic view of bustling southern Metro Manila.

Antonio, who is an MBA graduate of marketing and real еstatе from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, explained that Century Properties creates unique and exceptional projects. “We are not like other developers who have same buildings—different names. We want to give the homeowners something that they will love for years and years to come. I put myself in the position of the buyer and this is how I would like in a development. We’re not after quantity but rather, making lasting impressions in the landscape of the Philippines.”

According to Antonio, their initial investment on Azure is P20 billion, including commissions to real-еstatе agents. As of December 2013, 86 percent of the units have been pre-sold and, upon completion, the property will have over 330,000 sq m of built floor area.

“The grand launch of the Paris Beach Club cements further Century’s reputation as a developer of premium real еstatе that offers immense value and pride of ownership. Our brand partnerships, such as this one with Paris, have promoted product differentiation and innovation. This is why the company has successfully attracted buyers from the world over, both Filipinos and foreign nationals. At Azure, you can have the best of both worlds—the beach life and right beside you is SM Shopping Mall. We’re going to put an exit to SM for the residents,” added Antonio.

The Paris Beach Club is one of Century Properties’ branded developments. The company has also partnered with the Trump organization for Trump Tower; Versace Home for The Milano Residences; John Hitchcox and Philippe Starck’s yoo inspired by Starck for Acqua Iguazu; Missoni Home for Acqua Livingstone; Daniel Libeskind and Armani/Casa for Century Spire; GE Healthcare for Centuria Medical Makati.

After turning over close to 1,300 units in 2013, Century is turning over 550 more this month in the newly completed St. Tropez tower of Azure. Following the turnover of the Azure’s first two buildings—the Rio and Santorini—the Paris Beach Club is one of four buildings that the company has scheduled for turnover this year. The company had earlier started the turnover of Knightsbridge Residences. It also opened Century City Mall, its first retail development, in February, and will turn over the units of its Centuria Medical Makati IT-medical arts building in the latter part of the year.